I retire to bed early most nights
You follow me in or you don't
And either way, it's alright
You've been going with her now for seventeen weeks
But that doesn't make a blind bit of difference to me

Just when you're ready to take on the world
Some other girl had to get there first
And it's obvious that you're a man that's after her own heart
But you know where I am
And you know that you could have both

She's away
And you get by without her very well
If I'm around
You get by without her even better

I don't kid myself about happy endings
I'm too old for that now
Out on my doorstep, your lip burst and bleeding
Well, that was a crash course for me

You acted the film star while you were still spoken for
It didn't look rosy for me
But I've considered the alternatives
A few degrees of separation can't be that bad

Just when you're ready to take on the world
Some other girl had to get there first
And it's obvious that you're a man that's after her own heart
But you know where I am
And you know that you could have both
I wanted the world
But some other girl had to get there first
And it's obvious that you're a man that's after her own heart
But you know where I am
So stop!

"I feel like C.C. Baxter in Wilder's 'Apartment',
That particular arrangement just came out of the blue
And who was it who sang 'I know that you love one
So why can't you love two?'
I was in full-time education when I got scared of the future
And I've only got a job so I don't disappoint my mother
It's like I've painted myself into a social corner
Well, that's what happens when you listen to
Saint Scott Walker
On headphones
On the bus.
What about us? What about us?
My friends come round and they ask me 'What about us?'
My friends come round and they ask me 'What about us?'
You know that I, I don't kid myself about happy endings
I'm too old for all that now
But you don't have to worry that much about the future
And it's not as if you ever did before
Because you'll always have everything just as you want it
And there'll always be a phone to ring at three in the morning
And you'll always have someone who'll drive you home
Yes, you'll always have someone, someone to drive you home.
Someone to drive you home."

Just when you're ready to take on the world
Some other girl had to get there first
And it's obvious that you're a man that's after her own heart
But you know where I am
And you know what I want
And I know I'll never have you completely alone
So I'm trying to draw up a contingency plan
And it's obvious that you're a man that's after her own heart
But you know where I am
And you know that you could have both

9 Comments

General CommentAnd who was it who sang 'I know that you love one
So why can't you love two?' - is an allusion to a line from My Love Life by Morrissey. I asked about this to Dorian, the songwriter himself, and he admitted to it.

General CommentThat's true :) And 'I feel like CC Baxter' is a reference to one of my favourite Jack Lemmon films called 'The Apartment' where he lets workmates have trists in his apartment. Along, with 'A Knife For The Girls', my favourite song on the album. The speaky bit reminds me of Pulp.

General CommentI'm not too sure about this, but shouldn't it be "And it's obvious that you're a man that's out to own her" instead of "And it's obvious that you're a man that's after her own heart" or am I mistaken?

The meaning of this song isn't too hard to figure out. I like this song. Most of all, I like the part where it goes:

She's away
And you get by without her very well
If I'm around
You get by without her even better